The University of Maryland's Oral Pathology program is a fully accredited specialty training and graduate school experience that is four to five years in length. It leads to a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Oral Pathology. During the first two years, the students participate in didactic courses in the basic and clinical sciences. They are also introduced to the department's clinical practice and research endeavors.
During two summer sessions, the students function as prosectors in anatomic pathology and residents in surgical pathology at University Hospital. The remaining two years include mastery of surgical oral pathology and research leading to a Ph.D. dissertation.
The University of Maryland campus is located in Baltimore's spectacular Inner Harbor district, directly adjacent to the Camden Yards Orioles ballpark. The campus includes the University of Maryland Medical System Hospital and world famous Shock Trauma Center. The new Baltimore Veterans Administration Medical Center is adjacent to the campus, as are various clinical and research institutes. The hospitals have a combined capacity of about 1,000 beds. The campus also includes the University's School of Dentistry, Graduate School, and Schools of Medicine, Law, Social Work, Nursing and Pharmacy.
The Baltimore area offers an abundance of affordable apartments, condominiums, and homes. The city offers many cultural, athletic, historic, and other leisure events. The city is also a short distance from Washington, D.C. Areas for hunting, fishing, hiking, and boating are plentiful. Residents are provided tickets for certain Orioles baseball games at no cost.
Ph.D. PROGRAM IN ORAL AND EXPERIMENTAL PATHOLOGY
ONCOLOGY AND DIAGNOSTIC SCIENCES
UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND SCHOOL OF DENTISTRY
INTRODUCTION
The Ph.D. program of Oncology and Diagnostic Sciences in the School of Dentistry provides broad training in oral and experimental pathology as well as requiring some degree of specialization. Students admitted to the program have obtained at least a bachelor’s degree and a dental degree. Students should complete the requirements for admission to candidacy for the Ph.D. by the end of the third year and obtain their Ph.D. about a year later. Students entering with less preparation may need additional course work.
The program is administered by the Graduate Program Coordinator and a Graduate Program Committee selected by the departmental faculty. The Graduate Program Coordinator administers the program, oversees record keeping, and also serves as a full member of the committee. The duties of the committee are to review student applications to the program, to recommend the awarding of stipends, to propose policies, to help administer the program, and to report to the department faculty.
ENTRANCE REQUIREMENTS
Courses
Students admitted to the Ph.D. program generally have a strong undergraduate background in the biological sciences, and chemistry. Applicants lacking prerequisites will be required to correct these deficiencies by enrolling in undergraduate level courses.
Grades and the Graduate Record Examination
Minimum standards for admission to graduate programs at the University of Maryland are specified in the Graduate School catalog. The department requires an undergraduate grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.0 on a scale of 4.0, and grades of A or B in science courses are expected. Applicants should take the Graduate Record Examination.
Foreign Students
Students who meet the entry requirements and who hold degrees from foreign colleges or universities must pass the Test of English as Foreign Language (TOEFL) as a test of their proficiency in English. A supplementary course in English may be recommended for some students.
Foreign students eligible for admission must comply with all requirements of the Immigration and Naturalization Service. The Director of the Office of Admissions and Registrations has available forms required for obtaining the appropriate visa. Students already studying in the United States who wish to transfer to the University of Maryland must secure proper documents to obtain permission for transfer. A statement regarding the applicant’s financial status is required by the Office of Admissions and Registrations.
Interviews are not required.
After receipt of a completed application, the Graduate Program Committee may invite applicants for an interview to discuss their career goals and research interests.
STUDENT ADVISORY SYSTEM
Advisory Committee for Incoming Students
Each new student will be assigned to a Faculty Advisory Committee until he or she has selected a Dissertation Advisor. The committee will be made up of three faculty members who are chosen by the Graduate Program Committee and who represent a range of research interests. The Advisory Committee will help the student prepare a tentative doctoral program, will advise the student and recommend for faculty approval of a Dissertation Advisor, and will provide continuing evaluation of the student’s progress. This committee will be replaced by the Dissertation Advisor when one is selected.
At the end of the academic year, the Advisory Committee will meet with the student to discuss his or her strengths and weaknesses and to help the student evaluate his or her goals and direction.
Dissertation Advisor & Dissertation Committee
Selection of a Dissertation Advisor by the student generally occurs at the end of the first year of study and is subject to review by the departmental faculty. The Dissertation Advisor must be a member of the Graduate Faculty who is publishing in the area of the proposed dissertation research. In addition to supervising the dissertation research, he or she will help the student form a Dissertation Committee and will serve as its chair.
The Dissertation Committee consists of at least three members of the Graduate Faculty, including the Dissertation Advisor, and must be approved by the departmental faculty. This group replaces the initial Advisory Committee. It assumes responsibility for monitoring the student’s progress and finally for deciding when the dissertation is ready for defense. The Dissertation Committee will meet with student at least twice a year to discuss the student’s progress.
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COURSE REQUIREMENTS
With few exceptions, all students enrolled in the Ph.D. program must take the following:
1. GPLS 601, 602, 603, Molecular Mechanisms in Biomedical Sciences I, II, III, C2, 2, (4 credits)
2. DPAT 618 Seminar (1 credit)
This is required each semester; students are expected to attend departmental seminars and to present a research seminar twice yearly. Beginning students who do not yet have a research project are expected to report on a current literature survey of a topic of their choice.
3. DPAT 899 Doctoral Dissertation Research (1-12 credits)
A total of 12 hours of dissertation research is required by the Graduate School.
3. The student will also do rotations of approximately 8 - 10 weeks in faculty research laboratories. First year students select the laboratories in which they will work after consulting the departmental file on opportunities and their Advisory Committee. Additional laboratory rotations may be done at the student’s option.
In addition, a student may be required to take one of more of the following:
1. DPAT 612 Special Problems in Oral Pathology (2 credits)
2. DPAT 613 Special Problems in Oral Pathology (2 credits)
3. DPAT 614 Methods in Histopathology (4 credits)
4. DPAT 616 Advanced Histopathology of Oral Lesions (3 credits)
5. DPAT 617 Advanced Histopathology of Oral Lesions (3 credits)
6. DPAT 618 Seminar (1 credit)
7. DPAT 799 Master’s Thesis Research (1 credit)
Desirable Courses:
1. PATH 601 Pathology for Grad Students
2. PATH 602 Systemic Pathology
3. PATH 608 Autopsy Pathology (Required for American Board of Oral Path)
4. PATH 609 Surgical Pathology (Required for American Board of Oral Path)
Students will be expected to have basic knowledge of Cell Biology, Biostatistics, and computer usage in addition to the above subject areas. Students must take at least 38 credit hours of course work beyond the 12 required credits of Dissertation Research. Courses covering areas of special interest will be selected by the student in consultation with, and with the concurrence of, the Advisory Committee or Dissertation Advisor.
Students are expected to earn grades of B or better in all courses. Those who fail to maintain a B average are subject to the rules of the Graduate School, which are published in the Graduate School catalog.
There is no foreign language requirement.
ADMISSION TO CANDIDACY
Admission to candidacy requires meeting the criteria listed below, generally during the third year. It must be within five years after admission to the doctoral program and be at least two full sequential semesters (Spring, Summer, or Fall) before the date on which the degree will be conferred. Students must complete all of the program requirements for the degree within four years after admission to candidacy.
Courses
Prior to admission to candidacy, all course requirements will have been fulfilled.
Preliminary Examination
Competence will be judged on the basis of the Preliminary Examination. This is designed to test the student’s mastery of a broad field of knowledge including the integration of his or her course work with his or her research area.
The examination usually consists of at least two parts: a written research proposal (NIH format, without budget) based on the student’s proposed dissertation research, and a comprehensive written examination held at least two weeks later. It may also involve an oral presentation briefly summarizing the proposal and questions from the Preliminary Committee. The questions may cover any areas and will probe the student’s basic knowledge as well as specific points of the proposal.
In the unlikely event that a student’s knowledge of one or more relevant subject areas is perceived by the faculty to be less than that reflected by the student’s grade point average, the student may be required to take an examination covering the area(s) in question. The final decision on the format will rest with the Graduate Faculty, in consultation with the Graduate Program Committee.
The Preliminary Committee will consist of five members, at least one of whom shall not be affiliated formally with the department (either as a regular or joint appointee). The Dissertation Advisor may not serve on this committee. Committee members are suggested by the student and must be approved by the faculty. The committee members are the only faculty present at the examination and they alone are responsible for evaluating it.
Three grades are possible: Pass, Pass with conditions, and Fail. At least three of the five Examining Committee Members must approve a passing grade.
RESEARCH AND DISSERTATION
Dissertation
Upon completion of the dissertation research, a student shall present his or her results in the form of a dissertation. This should consist of manuscripts of publishable quality of which the student is first author plus an introduction and discussion; additional material may be included in an Appendix. The dissertation should be prepared in accordance with the guidelines published in the latest edition of the “University of Maryland Thesis Manual”. A PhD student is expected to publish (or receive acceptance for publication of) a significant part of his/her PhD dissertation findings in peer-reviewed journals of the corresponding field of research before graduation
Dissertation Defense
At least seven months before the final presentation of the dissertation, the student should notify the Graduate Program Coordinator in writing of his or her intention to defend the dissertation. The application should nominate persons in addition to the Dissertation Committee if necessary to form a Final Doctoral Examining Committee of at least five members. The composition of the Examining Committee must be approved by the departmental faculty and then by the Vice Chancellor for Graduate Studies and Research a minimum of six months prior to the final examination. All members must be regular members of the Graduate Faculty. At least one member of the final committee must be from outside the Department. One member of the Examining Committee is designated by the Vice Chancellor as his or her representative; this person assures that the examination is conducted properly and settles intra-committee disagreements over examination procedures. The Examining Committee is chaired by the Dissertation Advisor, who also determines the time and place of the defense.
The dissertation defense may be held no earlier than two weeks after the Vice Chancellor for Graduate Studies and Research has approved the Examining Committee. He or she is required to notify all members of the Graduate Faculty at least two weeks before each examination.
The format of the examination is an open seminar, with questions permitted from anyone present. After the seminar, the Examining Committee will meet privately to evaluate the student; additional questions may be asked of the student at this time. Final approval of the dissertation will rest with the Examining Committee. Votes in favor of passing by four committee members (regardless of the number on the Committee) constitutes approval of the dissertation.
A student may attempt to defend a dissertation no more than twice.
Financial Aid
Financial aid in the form of Graduate School Fellowships and Graduate Assistantships is available to qualified students. Applications for Graduate School Fellowships may be obtained directly from the Graduate School and require three letters of recommendation and the filing of a financial aid form. While the latter is necessary to complete the application procedure, preference for the fellowship is based primarily on past academic performance. The fellowships generally provide a small stipend and remission of tuition and are renewable on a yearly basis.
A limited number of Graduate Assistantships are available directly through the Department. They generally are awarded to students who are in their first or second year of graduate study. These assistantships may provide a larger stipend than the graduate school fellowships but carry no remission of tuition.
Bernard A. Levy, Program Director
Full-Time Faculty
John Basile,* Oncology, Oral Pathology
John Basile,* Oncology, Oral Pathology
Meena Chellaiah, Bone
Leslie Costello, Oncology and Prostate
Ross C. Couwenhoven, Salivary Gland Biology, Molecular Biology
Louis G. DePaola, Infection Control on Dental Practice, Emerging Infectious Diseases
Pei Feng, Oncology
Renty Franklin, Oncology & Prostate
Bernard A. Levy,* Histopathology of Oral Lesions, Forensic Odontology, Clinicial Oral Pathology
Li Mao, Oncology
Valli Meeks, Dental Management of HIV Patients
Timothy F. Meiller, Cellular Immunity in Medically Compromised Patients (HIV and Cancer), Molecular Characterization of Oral Pathogens
Silvia Montaner, Oncology, Oral Pathology, Oral Medicine
Linda Otis, Radiology
Henning Ren, Oncology
Mary Ann Rizk, Molecular Studies of Fungal Pathogens, Virulence Factors in Human Infection
Mark Scheper,* Oncology, Oral Pathology, Oral Medicine
Abraham Schneider, Oncology
Diana Weikel, Oral Complications in Cancer Patients, Multiple Myeloma; Oral Manifestations
* Board Certified by the American Board of Oral Pathology.
Administrative Staff
Shirl E. Harbin, Administrative Assistant II
Coordinator
Residents for 2010-2011 Academic Year
Hussain Almubarak, DDS
Hussain Almubarak, DDS
Chaidan Intapa, DDS
Amr Bugshan, DDS
Amr Bugshan, DDS
Nada Binmadi, DDS
Rania Younis, DDS
Rania Younis, DDS
Admissions Information
Program: Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology
Application Process: Direct
GRE Score reporting: Indicate Institution Code #5848
Application Deadline:* Rolling Admission
Maryland Application Fee: $50
Selection Process: Oncology and Diagnostic Sciences Selection Committee
You must submit an application to the Graduate School. The application form is available online in the Graduate School Website
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